Accurately capturing immune diversity is critical to advancing our understanding of disease mechanisms and enabling the development of more precise and effective therapies. However, conventional immune profiling technologies lack the resolution needed to understand the impact of immune system diversity on human health, obscuring associations between immune function and clinical outcomes and impeding development of effective biomarkers, treatments, and prophylactics.
To address this need, ClareoBio developed the ProfilAIR assay powered by PacBio HiFi sequencing to enable more complete RNA-based profiling of immune receptor transcripts. In support of accelerating the next generation of immunology research, ClareoBio is sponsoring the 2025 PacBio Immunology and Immunotherapy SMRT Grant and we are thrilled to now announce the winners.
This year’s program received hundreds of amazing proposals from researchers around the globe, each one in the pursuit of learning even more through ProfilAIR immune profiling. With so many groundbreaking ideas, we couldn’t stop at just one awardee, so we picked four!
Join us in congratulating these bold scientists who are charting the future of human immunology and immunotherapy research. We can’t wait to see the discoveries they’ll uncover with the power of high-accuracy, long-read HiFi sequencing.
To watch the presentations of all finalists visit our YouTube playlist.
Name: Wei Te Lei
Institution: Chang Gung University, Taiwan
Title: Full-length BCR repertoires in Kawasaki disease stratified by anti–type I IFN autoantibodies
Proposal:
We will apply PacBio HiFi sequencing (with ProfilAIR, BCR) to 40 pre-IVIG Kawasaki disease (KD) patients stratified by anti–type I interferon autoantibody status (ELISA/neutralization). Full-length reads will resolve V(D)J usage, CDR3 convergence, isotype/subisotype switching, and somatic hypermutation, enabling accurate clonal lineage tracing. We will test whether ACAA(+) cases show distinct plasmablast expansions or IgA/IgG class-switch programs and relate repertoire features to inflammation and coronary outcomes. This study will deliver a high-resolution B-cell atlas for KD and nominate public/expanded clones for recombinant antibody testing. Exploratory analyses will evaluate other anti-cytokine antibodies if detected.
Name: Numrah Fadra
Institution: Mayo Clinic, USA
Title: Resolving IgG subclass dynamics and clonal evolution in Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia (CLL)
Proposal:
We will apply ProfilAIR HiFi sequencing to characterize full-length B-cell receptor repertoires in CLL patients, focusing on IgG1 and IgG4 subclass expression patterns. Building on our preliminary findings of distinct transcriptional profiles between IgG1 and IgG4 B cells, HiFi sequencing will enable precise allele-level IGHV mutation status determination—a critical CLL prognostic marker—while simultaneously resolving isotype switching dynamics. By integrating subisotype-resolved clonal tracking with V(D)J usage profiles, we will identify repertoire signatures distinguishing indolent from aggressive disease, informing risk stratification and targeted immunotherapy approaches.
Name: Alicia Serrano Alcalá
Institution: INCLIVA – Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria, Spain
Title: Tracking clonal dynamics and CD19 Expression in DLBCL patients undergoing CAR-T therapy
Proposal:
Highly accurate long-read sequencing will be applied to investigate diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) under CAR-T therapy. CD19 expression, which may be absent prior to treatment, will be assessed to identify patients likely to benefit from CAR-T. Full-length IGH transcripts will enable monitoring of B-cell clonal dynamics and lymphoma evolution, while TCR repertoire analysis will characterize immune responses associated with transformations, or recurrences. Allele-level resolution of V, D, J, and C genes allows precise clonal tracking and detection of therapy-induced changes, providing actionable insights to anticipate disease progression and support optimization of patient-specific CAR-T strategies.
Name: Can Liu
Institution: Yale University, USA
Title: Mapping the neonatal protection gap: Full-length immune profiling of maternal-infant pairs
Proposal:
We propose using the ProfilAIR HiFi sequencing assay to sequence maternal–infant dyads following maternal pertussis vaccination. Understanding how maternal immunity shapes neonatal protection requires full-length TCR and BCR sequencing to resolve clonal structure, somatic hypermutation, and isotype usage, enabling discrimination between transferred maternal antibodies and the infant’s emerging repertoire. Leveraging HiFi reads, we will capture complete V(D)J transcripts with allele-level resolution across TRA, TRB, and IgG in 30 paired dyads with samples before and after vaccination. This high-resolution profiling will define clonal structure and maternal-infant repertoire relationships, informing mechanisms of early-life immune imprinting and next-generation strategies to optimize maternal vaccination for durable infant protection.
How to apply for PacBio grants
The PacBio Grant Program invites researchers across the world to apply for complimentary PacBio sequencing services for a diverse array of genomics research projects. To participate, choose an active grant program that aligns with your research area and complete the application by explaining how your important work would benefit from PacBio sequencing. Applications are thoroughly reviewed by experts in each application. Selected winners are notified by PacBio to arrange for free sequencing, which can include free consumables, library preparation, and preliminary bioinformatic analyses, all provided by an authorized sequencing service provider (terms and conditions apply).These opportunities include research across all areas of life sciences. For researchers decoding complex microbial communities, investigating cancer, conserving biodiversity, or exploring the most challenging regions of the human genome, there’s a PacBio grant designed to support your vision.
Thank you to our co-sponsor Clareo Biosciences for supporting the 2025 PacBio Immunology and Immunotherapy Grant.
Clareo Biosciences enables precision therapeutic development based on immune receptor diversity for labs and clinics worldwide. At Clareo, we believe better, more holistic data is the missing link to effectively use immune profiling to understand disease and to characterize individual responses to vaccines and treatments. And we believe better data means data that is both complete and precise.
